"Muscle Shoals" Documentary Trailer

I watched this the other day. It's fascinating and I learned a lot.

 

This one is up on Netflix for streaming

 

I spoke with a member of the Swampers over the weekend and he told me they came to Muscle Shoals Sound on the recommendation of Jim Dickinson. He told them it was a place "where they could work undisturbed and hang with cool people."

There's always been a strong connection between Memphis and Muscle Shoals music-wise and Jim can be seen in the doc during the tracking of "Wild Horses".

 

Thank you very much for your response.

 

Watched it on Netflix. Very interesting. Mick and Keith were great and their love for the sound was apparent. It was a big ego boost for nerdy looking white guys to know nerdy looking white guys made some of the funkiest music in history. cool. One question that came to mind was: Would Aretha Franklin or Etta James even have a shot at a music career today because the weren't cover girls like Alica Keyes? Personally, I doubt it. And that's a sad statement about today's music scene.

 

First time- small theater
Second time - public TV broadcast
Third time - Blu ray...holy crap !!!! Between the superior PQ, and the DTS HD Master Audio 5.1, it's like seeing / hearing it for the first time !!!

 

And it's still great on the about the 10th Blu-Ray viewing, too.

 

I really need to watch this.

 

Gotta give credit where it's due - Wooly Bully was recorded by Stan Kesler at Sun Records' Madison Avenue studio in Memphis.

 

i'll check the "memphis boys" book . . . it's been awhile since i read it.

doug

 

Stan engineered a lot of recordings for Sam Philips and others at Sun Studios in the 60s; Wooly Bully came out on Stan's XL label before getting picked up by MGM:
http://www.45cat.com/record/xl105
https://acerecords.co.uk/cant-be-satisfied-the-xl-and-sounds-of-memphis-story

 

Yes....yes you do...

 

28 minutes of extras, and TWO commentary tracks ( the Swampers and Rick's brings even more to the doc ! ), yes, this has rewatchability in spades.

 

Agreed - watched this about a week ago and it was everything you guys said it was (and twice more since then).

Side-note: Alicia Keys in that doc =

 

i didn't doubt you were correct, but my mind was playing tricks on me.

. . . the very early pages of the book MEMPHIS BOYS, discusses Wooly Bully (and Kesler, including quotes), making the connection in the context of some of the same musicians (Tommy Cogbill and a couple others) playing that session and then ending up in Moman's house band at American Sound. the author draws a comparison to the Wooly Bully session and a very early session at American the Gentrys and Keep On Dancing.

Though she clearly states that Kesler cut Wooly Bully at Sun's aux studio, that somehow didn't "stick" with me and I lumped it in with virtually every other song mentioned in the book as recorded across town at American. (She also references Kesler as putting together the Dixie Flyers, info that I DID read, but had forgotten).

so, pardon my error, and thanks for correcting. Clearly, Kesler's an important figure of that era.


doug

 

I'm a fan of Sun Records and the folks connected with it - Stan spent a lot of time working for Sam Philips and using the studio for his own labels' productions. Two of Stan's house bands ended up getting swiped out from under him (my guess is $$$ was waved under their noses, and Stan couldn't match what Chips or Jerry Wexler was offering to stay with him). I can't find any info on who played on the session for WB, but I wouldn't doubt that some of the folks were part of Stan's crew.

 

at this point, my "recall" w/o double-checking could be suspect, but--

at least a couple of players that made up the OG "memphis boys" at American had played some session work briefly with Chips at Hi when it was less soul oriented. i'm pretty sure that would've pre-dated the wooly-bully session.

I doubt Chips lured them with money--his place was kind rundown and about all he had was the money ($5,000?) he had gotten from Jim Stewart at Stax when he left there in a dispute over what he had been promised at start-up (basically, Stewart backing away from Moman since he had Cropper on deck) . . . my guess is they were more taken with Moman's musicianship, songwriting (not sure if this would've been pre- or post co-write of Dark End w/Penn) and overall attitude (could be cantankerous but seemed to have a certain x-factor/spark). He would prove to have quite an eye for talent and songwriters--Womack, Penn/Oldham, Wayne Carson Thompson, Mark James . . .

I think maybe Cogbill and guitarist Reggie Young were the two Moman had played with before. Moman had also worked sessions briefly on the West Coast.

Moman was one of the first (few?) to give session players a cut of the action above session fees or a salary.

I've read fairly much over the years on Sun, but mostly liner notes and long features rather than anything definitive. and most of it quite a few years ago.

Looking forward to Guralnick's "big tome" on Sam Phillips, due this fall, i think. (He's been known to push a deadline!)

 

Should be worth the wait judging by his previous books.

 

What did she do in the documentary? She didn't have as much makeup on as usual, right? I was watching the documentary tonight on PBS and she was simply stunning

I knew some of the stories about Muscle Shoals but this documentary really opened my ears to some great music. I have to go get the Blu-ray now.

 

The superior documentary, Muscle Shoals is down to $11.49 for the Blu ray !!!!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/Mu...IN=B00H3JHE0K&ASIN=B00H3JHE0K&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER

 

A fantastic documentary. For fans of the sound that no one else could get but Rick Hall, this is a must see. The story of muscle shoals sound and Ricks struggles and triumphs is joyful, beholding, saddening and celebratory all at once. Just awesome. Wonder how many people realize it was a buncha white kids playing on those records? lol Race barriers be damned. Black, white, green- whatever. They just wanted to and made some real music.

 

This is cool. $1000 bucks for Wild Horses.
I assume it's real but I don't know for sure. I don't even remember where the picture came from.

 

^^
Post of the day. Thanks for that.

 

I watched this on Netflix a few weeks ago. It's one of the most enjoyable music doco's I've watched.